Combined land and water vehicle.



P. B. KENNEDY & E. L. MORROW. COMBINED LAND AND WMER VEHICLE.

APPLICATION FILED IAN.I5.19I7.

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Patented Dec. 31, 19l8.

P. B. KENNEDY 6L E. L. MORROW.

COMBINED LAND AND WAER VEHICLE.

APPLICATloN FILED mms. |917.

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P. B. KENNEDY L E. L.. MORROW.

CUMBINED LAND AND WATER VEHICLE,y

APPLICAUON FILED mme. 19u.

Patented Dec. 31, 19H5.

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PETER B. KENNEDY AND ELMER L. IVIORROW, 0F SANITA BARBARA, CALIFORNIA; SAID MORROW ASSIGNOR '10 SAID KENNEDY.

COMBINED LAND AND WATER VEHICLE.

speciaeatiori of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. si, 1918.

Application filed January 16, 1917. Serial No. 142,699.

To all whom t may concern.'

Be it known that we, PETER B. KENNEDY and ELMER L. MoRRow, citizens of the United States, residing at Santa Barbara, in the'county of Santa Barbara and State of California, have invented new and useful Improvements in Combined Land and Water Vehicles, of which the following is a specification. p

This invention relates to improvements in vehicles adapted for travel on both land and water, and has for its primary object to provide a vehicle of this character embodying a hydrobase or bottom flotation surfaces, including folding floats and revoluble floats, which lare respectively provided to automatically come into operation when the vehicle is submerged in 'water and to Ybe driven so as to serve as propellers, whereby the vehicle Vmay be sustained upon and propelled along the surface of a body of water.

A further object of the invention is to provide a vehicle of the character described in which the folding floats, which are 'attached to the running boards of the vehicle, are adapted to fold to an inoperative position when the vehicle is traveling upon land and to float to an operative position when the vehicle enters the water, thus obviating the necessity of employing means for manually throwing the folding oats into and oit of action. y Y A still further object of the invention is to provide a hydrobase including a stationary forward centralpontoon and longitudinally extending side. pontoonsvhaving propelling surfaces, which side pontoons are adapted to be driven from the running gear of the vehicle, whereby the vehicle is adapted to be effectually supported upon a body of water and driven with considerable speed.

The invention consistsv ofthe Vfeatures of construction, combination and arrangement of parts hereinafter fully described and claimed, reference being had to the accompanying drawings in which Figure 1 is a side elevation of a combined land and water vehicle embodying our invention. n

Fig. 2 is a top plan view of the same.

Fig. 3 is a bottom plan view.

Figa is a rear elevation with Parts in section. Y

Fig. 5 is a vertical transverse section on line 5-5 of Fig..2. n

Fig. 6 is a detail View of the clutch mechanism for throwing the revoluble pontoons into and out of action. y y

In carrying our invention into practice,

-we provide a vehicle body 1, which is preferably cigar-shaped, and is provided with 'front supporting and steering wheels 2 and rear supporting and driving wheels 3, which may be of the pneumatic-tired type. The wheels 2 are journaled to rotate upon spindles Lcarried by steering knuckles 5 journaled upon a stationary transverse front axle 6, said knuckles having the crank arms 7 coupled by a connecting rod 8. This connecting rod is adapted to be actuated from a suitable type of control gear, including a control device 9, which control gear may be of the ordinary automobile type, whereby the front wheels may be simultaneously turned for a steering action. The wheels 3 are mounted upon `a transverse rear shaft composed of divided sections 10 which may be associated with an ordinary type of vdifferential gearing 11 actuated from a driving shaft 12. This shaft 12 may be driven in the usual manner from any preferred type of transmission gearing driven from a motor 13 disposed in the forward portion of the body 1, which motor may be supplied with gasolene or other fuel from a tank 14 contained in the rear portion of the body. The car 1 may be made of aluminum or other suitable material which is light in weight and yet possesses strength and durability and isk provided centrally with a cockpit or space 15 to accommodate suitable seats 16 and the steering and controlling v dal ends, and whichmay be lled with comv vpressed air, gas or any other suitablebuoy.- ant medium, The central pontoon 18 is iixed in positionl by suitable supports 20, while the side pontoons are journaled `for ,rotation .iebeafinss 21 and at@ .Provided which shafts 25 are provided at their upper endsf'with gears 26 meshing withv gears on the rear axle sections 10, whereby said pontoons are driven 'The' gears 27 are loosely mounted on the axle sections 10 and are adapted to be fixed thereto by clutch members 27 connected with actuating rods 28 which are coupledY to a'pair of'angularly disposed arms 29 on a leverBO, whereby on reverse movements of said lever the two clutches will be simultaneously thrown into or out of action. The lever 30 is provided with a third arm 31, coupled by a connect ing rod 32 to a suitable cont-rol device 33 disposed within Ithe vehicle body, so that theV driver or operator may throw the propeller pontoons'y intol and out of actionv at will. -By this means it will be understood that when the vehicle is travelingonland the propeller pontoons Vwill be thrown out of operation, while when the vehicle is traveling in: water the propeller pontoons will be thrown into action by the clutch mechanism to propel the vehicle.

In practice, the centraly forward pontoon may be either mounted 4directly upon the vehicle body or upon a sui-table part of the chassis orframe carryingthezaxles and gear housings. The pontoons forma hydrobasc which is designed to entirely or substantially support the weight ofthe vehicle in a body of waterbut in orderto secure increased flotation efficiency I preferably provide folding side floats 35'. These floats 35 Vconsist of boards"v or vplatforms which arey hinged at their inner or normally upper edges tothe running boards 36 of the vehicle land have their opposite edges free, each float being preferably provided u on` its inner or underside with an inflatable ody 37 which'may-be filled withair or gas having buoyant properties. The folding floats are adapted to5swing *byy gravity to a vertical position when the vehicle is traveling upon land, so as to dispose the bodies 37 beneath the running boards 86, and are adapted to float upward to the level of the running` boards when rthe vehicle enters the water to .provide side extension floats, thus increasing the flotation area of the vehicle andy adapting itto-ride withease and comfort even in very rough water, it being understood that the .folding yfloats when extended orv .swung outward to an operative position will'l also serve as fenders'to prevent the. water Vfrom* splashing into the. body' of the vehicle. l

In. order to. protectthe ruiming -llioar dsa-nd floats from the, action ofthe-water .and to -decrease the resistance of the "vehicle to travel through the water we provide the forward end of the vehicle body with a V-shaped prow `consisting of rearwardly diverging curved plates 38, which meet at their forward edges 'at' the bow ofthe body 1 and extend rearwardly therefrom on opposite sides of the body to a point just in advance of the running boards and folding floats, thus adapting the vehicle to cut cleanly through the water and sweep the water aside and beyond the line of the running boards, to diminsh the resistance of the running boards to travel. These plates 38 further serve as fenders to prevent the waves fromdashing too violently over upon the body ofthe vehicle in rough water.v l

It will be evident from the foregoing description that the invention provides a type of vehicle which is adapted to travelwith ease and facility upon both land and water, and which when arranged for water travel will be properly supported upon the surface of the water and may be driven at considerable speed by the revolution ,of the propeller pontoons. I-n thev travel of the vehicle in water the front supporting and steering wheels may be employed for steeringpurposes, or other suitable steering means may be used, and it willbeevidentthat in making a turnthe pontoons willi be driven at different: speeds to facilitateturning by the action of' the differential gearing. 'I't will, of course, be understood that -the parts may be made comparatively light in weight,y with properstrength and durability, by the use of aluminum alloys and other light and' strong materials. v

1'. A vehicle of the'character "described including a body, a frame provided with running wheelson which the body is flexibly suspended, gearing on said frame for driving saidE wheels, a motor upon thebody fgr driving said gearing, rotatable propeller floats upon'the body driven by the gearing, and means flexibly connecting said floats with thebody and frame,

'2. A vehicle of the character described includinga wheeled frame ha-ving a driving axle, va body flexibly supportedupon. said frame, gearing `uponthe frame for driving said driving axle, a motor upon the body for .driving said gearing, rotatable propeller pontoons flexibly jointed Yto the frame and body, gearing for drivingsaidrpontoons iio from Ithe first-named gearing', and means for throwing'the pontoon driving gearing into and out of action.

3. Avvehicle Vof the; character described including a frame providedy withl running wheels, a body supportedupon said frame, a

mounted on the frame and body, gearing `for driving said revoluble floats from the firstnamed gearing, means for throwing the float driving gearing into and out of action, and a motor for driving the Erst-named gearing, said motor being mounted upon the body of the Vehicle.

4. In a Vehicle of the eharadter described, a body provided with running boards, ioats hinged to the running boards, and a prow upon the body comprising rearwardly di- Verging plates extending rearwardly to positions adjacent to the forward ends of the running boards and iioa'ts.

In testimony whereof we aiiiX our signatures.

PETER B. KENNEDY. ELM-ER L, MORROW.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for ve cents each, by addressing the Gommissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C. 

